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thebookishcypher 's review for:
The Face on the Milk Carton
by Caroline B. Cooney
2.5 stars in reality, but I gave the book the benefit of the doubt solely because it was entertaining enough to keep my attention, and rounded up.
The truth of it, however, is this book could’ve been so much shorter than it was if Janie had followed through with ANY of her first attempts to actually do something when she first discovered she was a missing kid. You’re telling me a real life kid would back off that many times to uncover the truth and try to cover it up because it would “hurt my current parents feelings?”
I call bs.
If her internal struggle was a few pages, if her guilt was heavy but she still followed through, maybe I wouldn’t have minded because again, discovering you’re a missing kid and your parents aren’t really your parents, is enough of a shock for anyone let alone a young teen who just wants to make her parents happy. But the execution of how many times Janie went back and forth was bordering on unbelievable.
That’s not even mentioning how much I wanted to cringe when Reeve was mentioned. I didn’t care for him at all, especially when the first kiss was literally on page 47. There was no build up, no getting to know each other past “he’s my childhood friend and neighbor and I think he’s kinda hot.” Nothing. One minute they’re exchanging a kiss, the next few pages it’s back and forth between “omg I love you,” to “shut up and get out of my car.” Healthy relationship where? Not here clearly.
I had high hopes for this book, I truly did. The concept sounded intriguing and I really did want to like Janie and sympathize with her struggle to be a good daughter while also feeling guilty for having “abandoned” her real family for ice cream with a stranger as if it was her fault. That sort of trauma is hard to forget and live down. But the way this was written, followed by how flat the characters all felt, and to top it all off the interjection of the plot by Reese and his back and forth spiral between maturity and immaturity, were all problems too glaring to look past.
Therefore, I will unfortunately not be continuing this series, lest there is suddenly no toxic relationship between Janie and Reese, and actual character development in sight.
The truth of it, however, is this book could’ve been so much shorter than it was if Janie had followed through with ANY of her first attempts to actually do something when she first discovered she was a missing kid. You’re telling me a real life kid would back off that many times to uncover the truth and try to cover it up because it would “hurt my current parents feelings?”
I call bs.
If her internal struggle was a few pages, if her guilt was heavy but she still followed through, maybe I wouldn’t have minded because again, discovering you’re a missing kid and your parents aren’t really your parents, is enough of a shock for anyone let alone a young teen who just wants to make her parents happy. But the execution of how many times Janie went back and forth was bordering on unbelievable.
That’s not even mentioning how much I wanted to cringe when Reeve was mentioned. I didn’t care for him at all, especially when the first kiss was literally on page 47. There was no build up, no getting to know each other past “he’s my childhood friend and neighbor and I think he’s kinda hot.” Nothing. One minute they’re exchanging a kiss, the next few pages it’s back and forth between “omg I love you,” to “shut up and get out of my car.” Healthy relationship where? Not here clearly.
I had high hopes for this book, I truly did. The concept sounded intriguing and I really did want to like Janie and sympathize with her struggle to be a good daughter while also feeling guilty for having “abandoned” her real family for ice cream with a stranger as if it was her fault. That sort of trauma is hard to forget and live down. But the way this was written, followed by how flat the characters all felt, and to top it all off the interjection of the plot by Reese and his back and forth spiral between maturity and immaturity, were all problems too glaring to look past.
Therefore, I will unfortunately not be continuing this series, lest there is suddenly no toxic relationship between Janie and Reese, and actual character development in sight.